I enjoyed the new Mike Leigh film Happy-Go-Lucky. It's really a north London movie - driving round the mean streets of Finsbury Park, dancing in Koko (Camden Palace) etc. But the opening scene sees main character Poppy cycling across the river to Lower Marsh, behind Waterloo station, where she visits a bookshop. This scene was filmed in the fine Crockat and Powell bookshop there. I can report though the people who work there are a lot more friendly and forthcoming than the fictional bookshop worker in the film who steadfastly ignores Poppy's ceaseless attempts at jolly communication.Oh yes, the film also features New Cross-based actress Sylvestra Le Touzel as the flamenco-dancing headteacher in the school where Poppy works.
I thought happy go lucky was brill! as i live in the heart of camden it was really nice to sit there and pick out the places where she would go to. Poppy also reminded me of myself! dosy,scatty and talking about nothing all the time! big big comliments to the director and hope he has some more films like that up his sleeve for us.
ReplyDeleteI love Mike Leigh films and although I don't think this is particularly his style of movie I absolutely adored it. It's probably because I lived just a couple of minutes walk from Stroud Green Rd in Finsbury Park for a long time before moving to New Cross and every corner in the movie reminded me of my old hood- well and the Green Lanes. Are there any movies filmed in New Cross?
ReplyDeleteNone as chirpy as Happy Go Lucky - Intimacy, Nil by Mouth, Shaun of the Dead were all partly filmed in New Cross.
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